Roses & Romeos
by Razorfiend
Summary: Drew's the new boy with the less than perfect reputation. Too bad no one at his new school knows that... May's the girl who is all alone. She should be careful... And everyone else has their own problems to deal with! Who knew love would be so hard?
1. New Beginning?

The high school was unremarkable beneath a dazzling blue sky. Slapped together with red bricks and mortar, it was an ordinary place. Trees were planted along the path leading up to the main entrance; bushes trimmed into neat rectangles made a border around the property. It was an average sight for all the students except for one: Drew Camellia.

Drew watched his mother speed off in her silver car, following the silver speck with his green eyes until it disappeared, before sighing. He shifted his red bag higher up on his shoulders and turned to look at Thompson Academy, his new school. Snorting at the absurdity of the name, which made it seem like a private school when it was clearly public, he walked slowly to the front doors.

Once inside, he kept his head up. He didn't want to look like a nerd on his first day. The worst way to do that would be by looking around anxiously. He put a cool expression on his face as he made his way to his first class, English 11. Drew had many talents, and one of them was an innate sense of direction. He had also memorised his class schedule in advance.

He strode through the empty halls, wrinkling his nose at the smell of textbooks and paper. He wanted to be outside. Drew didn't like being kept in a cage; school definitely qualified as a cage. He came to a halt in front of room 303. He knocked on the peeling orange door once and waited, the chattering of students filtering out from under the door.

"Hello there!" a tall man with a brown goatee opened the door and smiled down at him. Drew didn't smile back. "I presume you're the new student?"

Drew nodded and the teacher—Mr. Noah—gestured for him to follow into the classroom. Drew moved his feet after him obediently. The second he stepped into the classroom it was as if a plug had been pulled; all the talking came to a halt. Drew stood stiffly at the front of the room, making sure to keep his eyes on everyone. He saw expectant faces staring at him and a butterfly of anxiety began to flutter madly in his stomach.

"Class, this is our new student," Mr. Noah announced. "His name is—"the teacher paused, turning to Drew.

"Drew Camellia."

"Right. I expect all of you to make him feel welcome."

The bubble of silence burst and everyone began speaking rapidly. Drew had to resist smashing his head against a wall. So this was public school: a place full of idiots who couldn't stop talking for more than a few seconds. He narrowed his eyes at one girl who was staring at him intently; she looked away, pretending to search for something in her pencil case. Drew grinned inwardly. At least the girls here were cute.

"Class, could you—"Mr. Noah spoke up feebly, but the class continued chattering. Mr. Noah looked helplessly around the room and focussed pleading eyes on Drew. Drew brought his fingers to his lips and whistled a long, sharp note. Everyone stared at him, shocked.

Mr. Noah beamed at him with thanks and Drew averted his eyes. He didn't want this guy to start fawning over him. He hated teacher's pets and there was no way in hell that he was going to become one.

"As I was saying class, Drew needs somewhere to sit." Mr. Noah darted his eyes around the room and came to rest on the girl who had been staring at Drew earlier. "May, do you mind if Drew sits next to you?"

May kept her blue eyes fixed on her pencil case as she answered."No."

Drew made his way over to her and noticed suddenly that all the desks around May were empty. He would've thought she was a loner, but she was so pretty. There was no way that this girl could be an outcast. He slid himself into the desk next to her and gave her his most charming smile. She didn't seem to notice him and Drew tapped her shoulder. She looked up, her startled expression quickly being replaced by a blank look.

"Hey, you're May right? Thanks for letting me sit here."

He wasn't sure if she replied or not because the class had once again exploded into a flurry of laughter and noise. Drew leaned back in his desk and stared up at the fluorescent lights. One of them was flickering on and off; he knew he would be driven crazy by this before the end of class. He tore his eyes away from the repetitive blinking and glanced sideways at May. She was looking at him the same way.

"Do you like what you see?" Drew asked, raising an eyebrow.

She glared at him. "No. "

"What's wrong?" Drew was taken aback by the ice flakes her eyes had become. "Am I not up to your standards or something?"

"Class, please settle down and do your worksheets," Mr. Noah said from his desk, barely audible over the roar of the students. No one paid him any attention.

"You're just another one of _those_ guys," May nearly snarled, shaking her head so that her brunette hair flew around her face.

"Excuse me?" Drew stared at her. No girl had ever spoken to him like that before and he was sure he didn't like it. "Why are you so bitter?"

For a moment her mask of anger slipped and Drew saw something intangible in her eyes. She looked...scared. He blinked and the mad look reappeared. She opened her mouth as if to speak, and then shut it, returning to her drawing. Drew watched her sketch furiously and was surprised to find himself speak up.

"What's that?" He nodded towards her paper.

She covered it with her arm and scowled at him. "Nothing a pretty boy like you would be interested in."

Drew rolled his eyes and pretended to become absorbed in looking at the light again. May returned to her sketch and Drew waited for the right moment to strike. He became distracted by the tendrils of hair that were hanging over her ocean colored eyes. He wanted to brush the brown strands away; he knew that was a good flirting move. But for this particular girl, he was afraid that his hand would be bitten off.

May looked away from her paper for a split second and Drew snatched it from her. She let out a frustrated sound and grabbed for it. Drew blocked her with his body and glanced at the drawing.

"Give it back, you ass!" May growled.

"This is really good. You got the shape of the petals right and everything," Drew replied, still contemplating the sketch of a rose covered with dew drops. "Have you practiced a lot?"

May tore the paper away from him and shoved it into her binder. Drew closed his eyes and prepared himself for a verbal bitch slapping wearily, but none came. He opened his eyes and saw May looking at him curiously, all traces of rage gone from her pixie face.

God, she was hot.

"Do you really like it?" her voice was soft and hesitant and Drew felt the need to be careful. She appeared as if she would shatter if he said the wrong thing.

He smiled at her."Yeah, I really do. You have talent. I know 'cause I'm a garde—my mom's a gardener. You drew the perfect rose."

"You're a gardener?"

"No." He laughed loudly, trying to quell his embarrassment. "I said my _mom_ is."

She gave him a skeptical look and he shrugged.

"Believe what you will, May."

"Okay." She brought the rose sketch out again and slid it towards him. "You can have this, if you want."

"A present for me, huh? You like me that much already?" Drew teased. May sputtered with indignation and tried to take her paper back. "I'm just kidding! I'll take care of it."

Their eyes met and Drew felt his stomach twist in a weird way. This was new; maybe he had eaten something bad for breakfast. He kept his eyes on hers until she blinked. May giggled nervously and the bell rang.

Drew stood up and slung his backpack over his shoulders. He began to walk away when he felt a hand tug at the sleeve of his purple jacket. He paused and saw May standing behind him.

"Yeah?"

She shrugged. "Well, since you're new, I could show you around or something. It would be sad if you got lost."

Drew cursed inwardly. He was an imbecile for having done it again. He had made another girl fall in love with him. It wasn't something he meant to do; he just enjoyed seeing girls smile and making them happy. Drew had _never_ liked any of the girls he had flirted with; May wasn't any different. Drew hesitated, looking at at May's hopeful face carefully, before he nodded once.

"That would be nice."

Drew Camellia, known as "That Evil Cheating Sociopath Bastard Player", among other names at his old school, was going to break another heart.

**A/N: Oh my, what have I done? I've started another Pokemon fanfic, that's what. I think I may be driven crazy by doing two stories at once but we'll see. I hope this will be entertaining! I have many ideas for where this could go. Leave a review and tell me what you think, okay? ;D Oh, and I made up Drew's last name. Look it up if you want to know what it means! There will be..quite a few shippings in Roses & Romeos. Dawn, Brock, Ash, Paul, Misty, and Gary will definitely appear; look forward to seeing which couples get together!  
**

**I DON'T OWN POKEMON, NO MATTER HOW MUCH I WOULD LIKE TO.**


	2. New Friends?

Drew and May left the classroom walking side by side. May had a little bounce in her step that Drew was sure he had seen before; all the girls he had ever spoken to had done the same thing. Drew nibbled on his lower lip, feeling a headache coming on. Maybe he should've refused her offer of showing him around the school. But one look at May's pretty face and he knew he wouldn't leave right away. He couldn't bear to do that.

"What are you thinking about?" May asked as they strode down the hallway. She looked up at Drew, waiting for a response. He was looking around at all the students with a bemused expression on his face. "Is this like your old school?"

"No," he replied, winking surreptitiously at a redhead who was walking beside a dark haired boy. The girl's pale face turned crimson and she looked away. The boy she was with was oblivious and continued rambling; Drew smiled.

May sighed and glanced down at his schedule, which she held tightly in her hand. "Whatever. So, your next class is in room 212—"

"Math, right?" Drew sighed. "At my old school, we had this math club. It was the best."

"How was it the best?" May's voice was suspicious as she stopped in front of room 212. Drew shrugged and held his hand out for his schedule. "Drew, I am asking you a question. What was so great about math club?"

Drew tried to take his schedule but May whipped it behind her back. Drew grinned. She was a feisty one, huh? She had seemed so submissive and sweet before. Her blue eyes bore into his and he easily kept her gaze without blinking. She turned away first.

"Fine. I don't want to know your dirty secrets anyway."

He placed a hand on her shoulder. "If I tell you, I bet it would make you mad. I don't want you to be mad at me."

"I won't get mad," May said, staring at his hand. "It had nothing to do with me. I'm just curious."

"Well." Drew pulled his hand away and leaned back against a row of lockers. "Math club was full of these gorgeous female tutors. God, they were amazing. I learned _so _much last year."

May snorted. "You thought that would make me mad? As if!"

"You're cute when you're mad," Drew replied, smiling at her brazenly.

She stamped her foot. "I'm not mad! And I'm not...I'm not cute!"

She stalked down the hallway and Drew watched her go, a smirk on his lips. What a strange girl; she wouldn't even accept compliments. The bell rang and Drew realized he was late for his class, even though he had been standing outside of it for the last few minutes. He strode in casually just as the teacher began to take attendance. Once again, he was introduced and told to take a seat. He found himself sitting in front of the red haired girl from before. He winked at her again and she glared at him. Drew sighed as he settled his butt on the uncomfortable chair. The girls at this school were pretty, but oh so very cold.

The girl poked him in the back and Drew shot forward. The teacher looked at him, frowning, and Drew flashed her an apologetic look. When the teacher returned to scrawling boring problems on the board, he turned around to face her.

"Hey. What did you stab me for?"

Her red hair hung to her shoulder in casual disarray and her eyes were narrowed as she rested her chin on her hands. The girl's eyes were a lighter shade of blue than May's were, Drew noted, and they were slightly grey on the rims of her irises.

"I stabbed you because I don't want you to get any ideas in that thick skull of yours," she hissed, twirling the black pen she had in her fingers.

"Ideas?" he replied, feigning innocence. "I don't know how this school works. Are you the girl who's in charge of harassing new kids?"

She kicked him from under the table as a response. Drew glowered at her, and noticed that the boy who was sitting beside her was the same loser she had been walking with earlier. He had charcoal hair and large hazel eyes. Drew nodded towards him, thinking that the guy looked like an idiot.

"Misty, who's that?" the boy asked loudly.

The teacher whirled around. "Ash Ketchum, I've told you this a thousand times. Please try to refrain from speaking while I'm speaking. Now, since I am done with the lesson, you may talk, but only about your work, please."

"Okay," Ash said, beaming at her. "Sorry, Mrs. Eisner."

Drew rolled his eyes at Ash's naivety. The boy was cute, but he probably didn't get very many girls. He seemed to be clueless and gullible; he looked as if his mom still dressed him, what with his brand new blue jeans and short sleeve shirt.

Ash turned his beam on him and Drew blinked, trying to shield his eyes from the blinding goodness of his smile.

"Hey, I'm Ash Ketchum," he said cheerfully.

Drew opened his mouth with mock surprise. "Really? I didn't know that. It's not like anyone said your name five seconds ago—ow!" he cried softly as Misty stabbed him with her pencil, sharp side pointing down on his tender flesh.

"You better shut up, Drew, if you know what's good for you," Misty growled. Her gaze softened as she looked at Ash, who was apparently her friend. "This guy is a loser, Ash. Don't talk to him."

"Why?" Ash replied, genuinely curious. "He's new. I bet he could use some friends. I know I wouldn't like it if I was alone on my first day."

"I'd love to be your friend!" Drew gave Ash a high five.

Misty held her head in her hands. "But Ash, I know these types of guys. They're just arrogant, awful, _pricks_!"

"Don't be like that," Drew said softly. "I'm...I'm like—", he flashed back to May's drawing, "I'm like a rose. I'm prickly before you know me, but I'm sweet once you climb up past my thorny stem."

Ash gazed at him with admiration. "You must be good in English class, huh?" He turned to Misty and grinned at her. "He might be even better than you!"

Misty threw an eraser at Ash and he ducked with the ease of someone who had dodged many objects. "Drew won't beat me. I can guarantee it. He just uses flowery metaphors."

"The girls here are weird," Drew commented absentmindedly, doodling a rose in the margins of his notebook. Ash and Misty stopped bickering long enough to look at him. Misty's face was a terrifying sight as she reached out and grabbed hold of Drew's shirt.

"What are you doing?" Drew was exasperated as he pulled free of her grip. She released him, gritting her teeth together. "Girls here are so _violent_."

"How would you know? You just got here!" Misty snapped. She tugged on Ash's arm for support. "Tell this guy off, Ash. You can't let him get away with this."

"You know, you _are_ pretty violent, Misty," Ash snickered. "Remember all those times you dragged Brock around by his ear whenever he talked to a girl?"His gleeful expression disappeared when he saw the rage on her face. "No, never mind. I didn't mean—"

"You will suffer for this, Ash!" Misty poked him several times in the arm, always when the teacher wasn't looking. Misty never got caught.

Drew could've sworn he saw tears in her eyes but they vanished when he blinked. He realized suddenly that Misty liked Ash. He could tell by the way she wanted him to be impressed by her. He could tell by all the things Misty did as an excuse to touch him. But the boy was painfully ignorant.

"This may be weird," Drew said slowly, "but are you guys dating?"

Both of their heads snapped up and they looked at each other for the briefest instant before looking away again. Drew observed the way both their cheeks were tinged crimson. He smiled to himself. It was always interesting when best friends were in love, but didn't know it. Well, Misty knew it, but he wasn't sure about Ash.

"We're not d-dating," Misty blurted out; her voice was a tad higher than it had been earlier.

"Nope," Ash confirmed. "We're just friends. Besides, Misty told me that she liked," his voice lowered to a whisper, "Paul."

Misty moaned and buried her face in her hands. "Oh my _God_! Ash, what did you say that for?" She shot Drew a death glare. "You will never repeat this to anyone, anytime. Understand?"

Drew nodded quickly and Misty's face relaxed. "I won't tell. Besides," he added, reaching his hand out and touching Misty's cheek, "I'm _sure_ you're not interested in this Paul person." She slapped his hand away and he laughed. Ash watched them, a slightly envious expression on his face that Misty didn't catch. But Drew saw everything and he laughed even more.

The bell rang and everyone got up, closing their blank notebooks. Nothing had been done here except for socializing. Drew stood up and put his backpack on, about to leave, when Ash called out his name. He pivoted on his right foot and stared down at them; they were still in their seats.

"Yeah?"

"Sit with us at lunch," Ash blurted out before Misty could say a word. "You seem like a pretty cool person."

Drew gave them an apologetic smile. "I'd like to, but I already have plans to eat with someone." This wasn't technically true, but Drew was sure he could make it happen.

"Really?" Misty raised an eyebrow, looking slightly hurt at his rebuff. "Who would that be?"

"Oh, just a girl," he answered. "Her name's May." With a curt nod, he turned and left the classroom.

Ash and Misty looked at each other, eyes wide. They both knew what the other was thinking and it was a few seconds before they could speak.

"He's eating with May?" Misty said, shock lacing every word.

"So those rumors are true?" Ash mused, eyes worried. "I never believed them. But I guess they must be. I just thought she was a really quiet girl, but—"

"The girls who look the nicest are usually the worst," Misty declared. Her mind was racing; Drew was going to eat with May? He obviously couldn't know about that girl. He probably just thought she was pretty—she was pretty, beautiful in fact—but she was a _slut_. She sighed and linked her arm through Ash's, revelling in the feel of his taut arm warm in hers. "Whatever. He'll find out soon enough."

**Author's note: WHOA. I feel so proud for actually updating both my stories in like a day. –pats self on back- This story is about to turn interesting, so stay tuned! I apologize for the lack of Contestshipping in this chapter, but this story can't be about that 24/7. Or can it? xD Thanks so much to all my reviewers from the first chapter. I love you guys and you make my heart smile! Look forward to Contestshipping (and other shipping) action very soon!**


	3. New Knowledge?

Drew was swallowed up by a crowd of students the moment he left his Math class. Bodies pressed into him from every direction but he didn't mind; some of those bodies, notably the female ones, were very attractive. A stunning girl with navy blue hair was on his right, wearing a tiny pink miniskirt which revealed her long legs. She was texting on her cell phone as she walked, oblivious to the thrumming of the people around her. Drew made zero attempt to resist her charms.

"Hey, I'm Drew Camellia," he spoke into her ear softly. Her head snapped up and she looked at him with beautiful blue eyes.

Drew was surprised; did all the girls here have light colored eyes? He saw a brown eyed girl walk by and was relieved. One color could get boring, even if it was beautiful. It was just like the roses in his garden. He wanted different varieties, not the same ones. It made each of the individual flowers special that way.

She smiled at him, revealing shiny white teeth. "Hey, I'm Dawn. Nice to meet you." She closed her cell phone and stopped walking in front of a cloudy grey locker. Drew watched her twirl the lock open and admired her slim hands.

"Do you play the piano?" he asked, casually standing next to her.

"No." She put her textbooks inside the locker and turned to face him. "Why would you think that?"

"Your hands are very elegant."

Dawn stared at her hands as if seeing them for the first time. "Do you think so?" She grinned mischievously. "Hey, you're not flirting with me, are you?"

"Would that be a bad thing?"

She batted her thick lashes at him. "Usually I'd hate it, but I'll make an exception for you since you're really cute. So, are you new here?"

"It's that obvious?" Drew questioned, sneaking glances at her chest. It wasn't bad, but May had bigger boobs. He hoped the girls here couldn't read minds, or he knew he'd have his ass kicked.

"Well, I would have definitely noticed you around before."

"Really?"

"Really." She licked her lips once, and Drew marveled at how her pink lip gloss didn't come off. The wonders of modern make up were truly remarkable. "So, you know that it's lunch, right? I'd rather not stand around by my locker to eat."

Drew chuckled. "So, where _do _you want to eat?"

"With my friends in the cafeteria." She giggled at the pout on his face. "You can join in, if you want. I'm sure they'd love to get to know you."

"So your friends are female?"

"Yes." Dawn brought out a tiny compact mirror and observed her face in it. "Would you rather hang out with guys? I totally understand. If you were with us, Gary would totally hit on you. Guys never sit with girls around here, unless they're like, dating or something."

Drew felt a surge of queasiness wash over him. "So this Gary person is..."

"He's gay," Dawn confirmed.

Drew couldn't imagine how it would feel not to like girls, but then realized that_ he_ had never fallen in love with a girl before. So maybe...maybe he was gay too? He felt faint and shook his head. Impossible. He just hadn't met the right person yet. Besides, if he was into men, he would have flirted with them a long time ago; Drew wasn't shy. If he liked guys, he would make a move on them. But he wasn't so he didn't.

Dawn tilted her head to the side. "Drew, are you..."

"I'm not gay," Drew retorted hastily. "I'm 100% into girls."

"Good." Dawn gave a sigh of relief. "I love gay people, I honestly do. I mean, boy-boy action is so freaking cute. But it seems as if all the straight guys around here are totally unattractive. It worries me! I mean, why do gay guys get to have all the hot genes?"

"I guess I got lucky," Drew replied, amused. "So, you think I'm hot, huh?"

"I'll admit it," she giggled. "But just so you know, there' s no way that I could ever end up dating you."

Panic seized Drew's voice and he stared at her in silence. Did she know about his reputation? Did she know that he led girls along but crushed their heart in the end? Was she going to tell everyone and ruin any chance of pleasure in this school for him?

"Why not?" Drew replied, trying to sound uninterested.

"Well." She glanced around furtively. "I like someone already."

"I thought you said the straight guys here weren't attractive."

Red roses had bloomed on her cheeks and she looked away from him, staring down at her high heeled boots. Drew couldn't help feeling envious. Why were all the girls he had met already in love? Drew wished for a moment that he would blush when mentioning a girl's name, but he wasn't sure that would ever happen. His heart was... loveless.

"Most guys here aren't my type," she said slowly. "But Paul...well, he's different." She blinked when she realized she had revealed his name and shot Drew a warning look. "I didn't mean to say that. No one knows that I like him, so—"

Drew crossed his heart. "I won't tell a soul." Inwardly he couldn't help but feel his rivalry flare up. Misty pretended to like this Paul person but Dawn really had a crush on him? He was glad that May hadn't mentioned his name, or there would be hell to pay.

"Thank you!" she squealed in relief, flinging her thin arms around his neck. He breathed in her flowery scent deeply, enjoying the girly aroma. "I would be _so_ embarrassed if word got out." She released him and sighed. "Pa—the guy I like...he's like, a loner."

"Bad boy type?" Drew teased, enjoying the way her blush darkened.

"Yes. No, I don't know," she said helplessly. "I just like him. He's so mature and cool and..." her voice trailed off and she turned away from him. "I'm going to shut up. Let's eat now!"

"Sorry, but I can't join you."

"What?" Dawn furrowed her eyebrows. "Why not?"

"I'm eating with someone else today," Drew told her, vision of the beautiful May dancing in his head. He realized suddenly that he didn't know where to find her and looked at Dawn with dismay. "Do you know a girl named May Maple, by any chance?"

Dawn lowered the stick of gum she was about to put in her mouth.

"_May Maple_?"

Drew laughed. "You sound surprised."

"I wouldn't hang out with her, if I were you," Dawn said icily. "She's not exactly the most trustworthy person."

"Really?" Drew thought back to the scared look in May's eyes and couldn't picture that girl betraying anyone. "What did she do?"

"The question is what _hasn't_ that girl done?" Dawn's tone was scornful.

Drew stepped away from her, feeling anger bubbling in his veins. So, Dawn was a mean girl. He had certainly been fooled by her feminine charm. There was no way that he could speak to someone who spoke cruelly about others.

"I have to go," he muttered. "See you around." He left quickly, without waiting for a reply.

Dawn watched him go, feeling ashamed. She hadn't meant her words to be so harsh, but everyone at school new the May Maple story. They all knew that May only looked out for herself and didn't care about anyone else. Dawn made her way to the cafeteria miserably. The only thing that could brighten up her day now was seeing Paul.

Drew wasn't sure how to go about finding May. He thought about asking students for help, but he was beginning to realize that May was a taboo name in Thompson Academy. He didn't think he would able to hold his anger back if he heard anything else bad said about her. Drew had already gotten into trouble for fighting in the past, and he knew his mother would have a nervous breakdown if he was anything less than perfect.

Drew was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he bumped into someone. He mumbled an apology and continued walking, when he froze. He turned around and saw May. She had just emerged from the girl's washroom, from which the sounds of tinny laughter could be heard.

"Am I invisible to you?" she asked as he backtracked to where she was standing. "Last time I checked, I was a solid object."

"Sorry," Drew muttered again. He couldn't meet her eyes; he felt guilty about all the whispered rumors he had heard about her. It was as if he had been the one saying those poisonous things.

She reached a hand out but lowered it quickly. "Drew, is something wrong?"

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and gave her a half hug.

"Lesson one: never ask boys that question. It drives us crazy," Drew murmured, moving his lips closer to whisper in her ear. She pulled away a moment too late and Drew felt her shiver at his touch.

"Anyways!" May's voice was much louder than it had been. "I guess I better be going now. I have important stuff to do."

"What stuff? Eating lunch?"

"Yeah."

May avoided his gaze and Drew saw her embarrassed expression fade away. Her face was a blank mask once again. Drew took her hand gently in his and she resisted, but he refused to let go. She looked at him with nervous eyes and Drew wished that he could take her to a place where she didn't look like a startled Ratata; he wished that he could help her smile. At that moment, it was all he wanted.

"C'mon, let's go eat outside." He thought he would have to drag her along, but she kept her hand in his and followed him without any resistance.

They both blinked when the afternoon sun hit their eyes; Drew's adjusted almost instantaneously and he led her through the fields that surrounded the school. A fresh wind blew around them as they stepped on the springy grass.

"Drew, I don't want to—" May spoke up pleadingly. Her voice trailed off as Drew stopped moving.

They were standing in the exact center of the field. They could hear cars roaring gently as they sped past the school from many yards away. The sun beamed onto May's face and her eyes sparkled, giving her a lively look. Drew took her other hand and held both her hands up to his lips.

He kissed each of her hands gently and she sighed; it was a wistful sound. She pulled them away, giving him a weak glare. She put her hands behind her back and looked up at the sky.

"Drew, what am I doing here?"

"What are _we_ doing here," he corrected. "May, we're in this field because that school is like a cage. I think we should be free of it for a while. Don't you?" He gave her an encouraging smile, but she deliberately avoided looking at him.

"I want to go back," she said suddenly.

Drew stared at her. "Why? Don't tell me that you like it in there."

Goosebumps flared up on her skin, despite the fact that the sun was warm and the air was pleasant. She slowly turned to look at him with tired eyes.

"I shouldn't be out here." Her voice was tiny as she repeated, "I want to go back." When she said these words, she made a move to leave, but her legs wouldn't seem to obey her. She stared at the school, looking like a zombie.

Drew placed his hands on her shoulders. "Well, I want you to stay out here." She gave him a questioning glance and he smiled at her. "You're the first friend I've made at this school. I want to be with you right now."

May lowered herself to the ground and wrapped her arms around her knees. She stared morosely at a little white daisy that was growing in front of her. She reached out and yanked, tearing the fragile flower from the earth. She glanced at it briefly before tossing it aside. Drew settled down beside her and they sat in silence, the sun lapping at their backs.

"We don't have any food," May spoke up suddenly. "We have to go back inside to get some."

Drew waggled his eyebrows at her. "Who says we don't?"

He reached into his backpack and pulled out a lunchbox. A smile crept onto May's face when she saw that it was covered with cartoon Eevees. He told her to close her eyes and she did. He opened the lunchbox, knowing that his mother had made him his usual "first day of school" meal of fancy triangle sandwiches, like she always did. This was why he was surprised to see nothing in it but a single long stemmed rose.

"Can I open my eyes?" May asked, curiosity lacing her voice.

Drew stared at the rose in disbelief. "What the fu—"

May's eyes popped open and she peered into the lunchbox. She stared at the vivid red flower for a moment, before turning to Drew with a look of admiration on her face.

"That's really sweet of you," she said softly.

"No problem," Drew said, although it sounded more like a question. He watched May smile as she sniffed at the shiny petals and he couldn't help but smile too. Well, if there was ever a good day for his mother to screw up his lunch, it was today. "I know how much you like them. You know, after I saw your drawing and all—" he blathered, trying to create an explanation about why there was a flower in his lunchbox. He jumped slightly when the bell tolled in the distance and May sighed.

"Guess I'll have to starve in my afternoon classes, then."

He helped May to her feet and she gave him a penetrating look.

"Drew, you're really nice." She paused, fumbling with her thoughts. "I'm sorry for acting so weird. You were right. I don't like school." She made a face and added, "That might change this year, though."

"Why's that?" Drew asked, brushing grass off of the back of his jeans. She knew that he knew the answer and she gave a little laugh.

"No reason."

He nudged her with his elbow. "You know that amazing rose drawing you did? I'm going to frame it."

"That crappy thing?" She shrugged, reverting to her nonchalant state. "Do whatever you want. I don't care."

They walked side by side back to school, shoulders brushing. Drew knew he was completely insane for leading her on like this. It was one thing to harmlessly flirt with a girl in the halls, and it was quite another to give her roses. He didn't want to make May cry, but he knew that it would happen. His world would crumble around him; rose petals always wilted eventually.

**A/N: Er. Yeah. I have NO IDEA how I'm managing to write one R&R chapter a day. *glances at neglected homework* xD I hope this was slightly more Contestshippy. It'll get better, I swear. This story is quite fun to write...my other story is much darker and this one relieves my mind from the darkness. This isn't all light and sunshine though, as I'm sure you've noticed. Keep reviewing and I'll keep writing! How's that for a good deal? ;D**


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